


...And the Secrets of Childhood

by GrumpyJenn



Category: The Librarians (TV 2014)
Genre: Friendship, Friendship/Love, Trust
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-05
Updated: 2015-02-05
Packaged: 2018-03-10 14:43:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3294203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GrumpyJenn/pseuds/GrumpyJenn





	...And the Secrets of Childhood

**Author's Note:**

  * For [justlook3](https://archiveofourown.org/users/justlook3/gifts), [AnagramRMX](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnagramRMX/gifts).



“ _What_ did you say?”

Cassandra looked horribly embarrassed, but she held her ground. “I said I want to have sex with you.”

Jacob Stone found himself spluttering. “But… Cassie, you can’t just _say_ things like that to random people!”

“I didn’t say it to random people.” Now she looked hurt on top of the embarrassment. _Shit_. “I said it to you. But if you don’t want me, like the oth—just forget it!” She turned sharply on her heel as Jake stared dumbly after her, and it wasn’t until he heard her choke back a sob as she struggled with the doorknob that he gathered his wits together.

“Cassie.” She stopped wrestling with the door and was still, except for the very slight shaking of her shoulders. Jake stepped to her and took her hand. “Come on. We gotta talk.”

She resisted, of course she did, because now she was mortified at her own behavior.

But Jake found himself torn between healthy lust and friendly affection, between curiosity and a certain marveling at her audacity. It couldn’t’ve been easy for her.

So he led her to a couch and sat down, pulling her down with him. “Now, darlin’, you want to tell me what this is all about?”

She shook her head and refused to look up, and Jake started tracing light circles on the hand he still held. He tipped up her chin with the other hand, and when he saw her face he cursed under his breath.

Because Cassie wasn’t embarrassed; he could see that in her skin and her expression, shockingly pale and carefully blank. No, she wasn’t embarrassed.

She was scared. And… grieving, or maybe ashamed or... it was hard to tell.

“Come on, sweetheart, tell me what’s wrong. It’s not like you to be so…” _How to put it?_

“Slutty?” Bitterly.

“God, _no_. Jesus, Cass. You asked me to…” Here Jake swallowed hard. “…to have sex with you. I take it you don’t do that sort of thing often.”

“What, try – and fail – to seduce my colleague and b-best friend?”

“Askin’ ain’t tryin’. Cass, I…” _God, she looks so scared_. “I mean… have you ever… done that before?”

“Oh,” Cassandra said flatly. “That.” She took a deep breath, and the pink flush washing over the pale skin of her face suggested that the embarrassment was back. “I did that a lot,” she continued, and now the bitter tone was overlaid with… was it _shame_? “Dozens of boys, until I… had a math spell in the middle of…” She trailed off, then tried again. “I wasn’t even careful, because after the tumor, what did I have to lose? I was d-dying anyway.” The last word ended on another broken sob, and Jake didn’t think; he just gathered her in and held on.

He stroked her hair and her back and made little comforting noises. And he thought fast. _She’s had sex before, several times, but she’s scared. Of rejection? Or did something bad happen – did she get pregnant or ill or… she said she wasn’t careful, and_ … Just as the soothing noises turned into words— “I’m so sorry, Cass, darlin’, so sorry, honey, poor little thing”—she sat up.

She must have heard him too, and misinterpreted it, because she practically spat the words. “I don’t want pity! Not from you, I…”

“It ain’t _pity_ , Cassie, Jesus!”

“Yes it _is_!”

“No,” Jake said. “It’s not. Or mostly not.” She looked angrily at him, taking a breath and ready to fight, so Jake held up a hand. “I ain’t done. Honey, if there’s any pity there it’s for the confused girl who’d just had the rug yanked out. Not for the fascinating, brilliant, beautiful woman you are today.”

“Really?” Cassie’s voice was very small, and she looked as though she did not entirely believe him.

“Really,” Jake confirmed, sliding his hands up her arms. “Because if you were still that scared little girl, you’d be too young for me to do this…”

And he bent his head and kissed her.


End file.
